Glasswells given green light for massive new store in Ipswich
Glasswells, East Anglia’s largest independent furnishing retailer, has been given the green light for a massive new showroom in Ipswich. Work is scheduled to begin shortly on a £5 million 73,000 sq ft store on Orwell Retail Park.
Artists impression of the new store
When completed, the showroom will be similar in size to Glasswells’ store on Newmarket Road in Bury St Edmunds and nearly four times the size of its existing store in Martlesham Heath.
Planning permission was granted by Ipswich Borough Council on Thursday 24th January for work to begin at the site, which is at the junction of London Road and Ranelagh Road. The two-floor, glass-fronted showroom is scheduled to open at the end of the year, creating approximately 70 new jobs for the town.
Managing director, Paul Glasswell, said, “This is great news for us. We’re keen to get underway with the building works just as soon as possible now. Next week we will start with a huge closing down sale at our ‘Furniture Now’ showroom, which is on the site currently. We then plan to get underway with construction work in April.
The plan is for an attractive landmark building with a stunning glass frontage to replace the current 1970’s building. Glasswells are also planning substantial and sympathetic landscaping.
“The product range will be very similar to that in our Bury St Edmunds’ store. As well as dining and upholstered furniture, we will sell beds, floor coverings, curtains and linens, lighting, giftware and cookware,” Paul said. “We will also have an in-store designer service and will also offer contract furnishing for businesses. The plan is for a one-stop furnishing shop for this area.”
Like the Bury St Edmunds showroom, the new store will have a restaurant – Place to Eat - which will be open daily for tea and coffee, as well as cakes and freshly-prepared meals. There will also be a Playzone for children, equipped with toys and video lounge.
“There is a lot of development going on in and around Ipswich at the moment, and we see it as an area with a great deal of potential,” he added. “We’ve had a store at Martlesham since 1995 and it’s always done well. We’re now ready to take our investment in east Suffolk to a different level, based on that experience.”
Glasswells is a family company, set up by Paul Glasswell’s father, Leslie Glasswell, who is still chairman of the company, and Paul’s grandfather, more than 60 years ago in Bury St Edmunds. There are further Glasswells’ showrooms in Saffron Walden and Haverhill. The company also has divisions specialising in contract furnishings, furniture removals and storage.
The two other stores on the Orwell Park site will remain unchanged as a result of the redevelopment of the Glasswells store.
